Description:
One of the most interesting areas of software development is the new and thriving "handheld device" market. Jeff Baker's Windows CE Application Programming is a great one-volume introduction to using Windows CE as a way to create software for handheld devices. This text begins with an examination of the Windows CE platform, demonstrating how it resembles and diverges from standard Windows Win32 application programming interface (API) for programmers. (Much is taken out, and a few areas of API functionality have been added, but, all in all, the fundamentals of Win32 programming hold true here.) The author also surveys the current crop of handheld devices as well as the tool used to develop software for them--Visual C++ for Windows CE, an add-on to Microsoft's standard compiler. Although this book avoids Microsoft Foundation Class (MFC) programming (now available in an updated developer's kit), it uses custom C++ to create an application that manages travel and personal information. The heart of the book examines the capabilities of basic Windows CE-type applications feature by feature, starting with basic user interface conventions and controls. The author then moves farther afield to describe the unique features of Windows CE, such as file-conversion, database, and help APIs that are unique to this new platform. Features are added to the basic travel information manager until a final product is created. (The book includes all source code and a usable final product.) Although MFC is missing, this text can provide all you need to start programming for handheld devices, where small and efficient programming is the rule.
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